Re: favourite classic series

In honour of the fact that I inadvertantly threadjacked Wolrams Fall guy thread, oops. And the fact that I love old classics: what is your favourite old series, from any era, show your age; let's hear about some of those goofy loveable oldies, that now exist either as re-runs or on DVD.

I'm going to put up a starter, feel free to indulge your most obscure reminiscences.

Blakes Seven.

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The series was created by Terry Nation, who had previously worked on Doctor Who and created the Doctor's most famous adversaries, the Daleks. It was made in the United Kingdom and was produced and broadcast by the BBC. Blake's 7 resembled other BBC science fiction shows (such as Doctor Who), but was characterised by a darker tone and often defied the traditional sharply-defined ethical stances associated with this type of drama, with considerable blurring of the distinction between the "good" and the "bad" guys (and gals).

Loosely based on the Robin Hood legend, the show followed the exploits of a group of outlaw revolutionaries, led by a patriot-hero named Roj Blake (Gareth Thomas), who fought the fascist interstellar Terran Federation in the second century of the third calendar. Blake's 7 was watched by 10 million viewers at its peak, an enormous number for a space opera.

The show is noted for its strong focus on character; Blake and his band of outlaws were all highly individual, distinctive, and flawed, as often at each others' throats and in pursuit of their own private agendas as they were facing down their common enemies in the Federation. It also featured a remarkable attrition rate among its main characters, in violation of accepted practice for a drama of its nature. Unlike many mainstream TV dramas, the morally ambiguous or evil characters (specifically, Avon and the ruthless but charismatic Servalan) proved to be the most interesting, and both soon gathered dedicated fan followings.

I'm thinking the former was about the technological economy meeting evolutionary biology ("Do you like penicillin on your pizza?") and the latter was about the impossibility of defeating light in a race via the many-worlds interpretation of quantum mechanics. Hey, if time stands still for photons, so too for Rainbow Brite.